Polishing machine



Sept. 26, 1933. H. .1. MURRAY 1,923,389

POLISHING MACHINE Filed Nov. 7, 1930 2 Sheets-Sheet l INVENTOR firmldJjllwny',

ATTORNEY p 6, 1933. H. J. MURRAY 1,928,389

POLISHING MACHINE Filed Nov. 7, 1930 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 INVENTOR fimdJA/mgl.

ATTCRNEY Patented Sept. 26, 1933 UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE POLISHING MACHINE Application November 7, 1930. Serial No. 493,991

9 Claims.

The invention relates to a cleaning and polishing' device of general application wherever such devices are intended to be used, and the invention is particularly designed for use in the surface treatment of irregular and other surfaces containing parts which are difficult of access. The invention as disclosed herein is designed with specific reference to its use in cleaning, polishing, simonizing and otherwise treating metallic surfaces which include re-entrance angles, shoulders and other difiicultly accessible parts such as are found on automobiles.

Attempts have been made heretofore in the polishing and simonizing of automobiles and other structures to use different forms of power actuated polishing machines usually characterized by a polishing tool mounted for rotary movement. It has been found, however, that such machines are not practical in actual operation, due among other reasons to the fact that instead of providing the uniformly polished surface characterizing a hand polished operation, the rotating tool simply wipes or whirls the wax or other coating off the surface more or less leaving a whirled and somewhat circularly streaked appearance to the treated surface. Such devices have the further disadvantage in that it is difficult if not impossible to cover the entire surface in those parts which are not flat, and this is particularly true in case the surface under treatment contains angles, recesses or raised portions into which the rotating tool cannot fit itself.

While hand polishing under similar circumstances gives satisfactory results insofar as the appearance of the finished surface is concerned, the manual action is fatiguing and this fatigue is quite noticeable especially when the operation is performed at the high speed which gives the best results when operating on wax and similar surface coatings.

Accordingly, the primary object of the invention is to provide a simplified form of cleaning and polishing device which will simulate insofar as is possible the action of a persons hand in effecting a polishing operation and which device will be hand guided and power driven and in which the pressure on the surface under treatmeant will be under control of the operator.

It has been observed experimentally that in polishing automobile and similar surfaces with the usual wax containing coating employed in simonizing, that the best effects are produced when the polishing tool is moved by hand pressure over the surface in a more or less reciprocatory movement, or better with a slight elliptical movement and that a less pleasing and more streaky effect is produced as the polishing action approaches a circular movement especially if any material degree of pressure is utilized and on the other hand increase in pressure within reasonable limits improves the polishing effect.

The present disclosure features a mechanism for causing the polishing tool to move back and forth with a reciprocatory movement in distinction from the circular movement characterizing previous known similar devices and which at the same time can be moved bodily over the surface to be polished with an elliptical or oval movement.

Any hand guided tool which includes parts reciprocating at high speeds especially where the moving parts must contain some material weight and size will set up a vibration of the handle which jerks the tool about on the surface under treatment and further, it reacts on the operator to cause intense fatigue in a short time.

Accordingly, another object of the invention is to provide a hand guided polishing and cleansing tool which will include such reciprocating parts and at the same time which will be free or substantially free from self imposed vibratory movement and which can be guided about easily.

Broadly, this phase of the invention is attained by providing two polishing tools of the vibratory or reciprocatory type disposed to move along parallel paths and interconnected to move simultaneously in opposite directions thereby to neutralize vibratory action.

Another object of the invention is to provide a form of' polishing tool simulating a person's finger and shaped so as to provide on the one hand an extensive area of engagement when moving over wide surfaces free of obstacles and to provide on the other hand narrow end portions shaped to facilitate the engaging of the surfaces which go to make up re-entrance angles, corners and other diflicultly accessible parts of the surface under treatment.

Still another object of the invention is to provide a simplified means for attaching and replacing wearable parts, particularly the relatively soft materials forming the work engaging surfaces of the tools.

Various other objects and advantages of the invention will be in part obvious from an inspection of the accompanying drawings, and in part will be more fully set forth in the following particular description of one form of mechanism embodying the invention, and the invention also consists in certain new and novel features of construction and combination of parts hereinafter set forth and claimed.

1n the accompanying drawings:

There is shown in Fig. 1 a preferred embodiment of the invention shown in operative position carried by the operator and engaging the engine hood of an automobile in the act of polishing the same;

Fig. 2 is a view partly in side elevation of the handle element of the device shown in Fig. 1 and shown partly in vertical section transversely of the driving shaft;

Fig. 3 is a plan view looking down on the device shown in Fig. 2 with parts broken away on a horizontal sectional line;

Fig. 4 is a vertical transverse sectional view taken on the line 4-4 of Fig. 3 looking in the direction indicated by the arrows; and

Fig. 5 is a detailed perspective view of one of the replaceable work engaging tool coverings shown in the preceding figures.

Referring to the showing in Fig. 1, there is shown a small electric motor provided with a body harness 11 by means of which the motor may be carried about on the person of the operator so as to provide the minimum length of cable 12 between the motor 10 and the tool support 13 which has its upper side and periphery designed to provide a handle but it is obviously within the scope of the disclosure to have the motor permanently mounted in place or otherwise supported as by suspension from an overhanging trolley. The motor is supplied with current from a lead 14 provided with an attaching plug 15 and containing a switch 16 disposed in position convenient to the operator so that he may easily control the operation of the motor at will.

The handle 13 is formed of two parts 17 and 18 secured together by horizontally extending screws 19. The handle 13 is fashioned so as to fit conveniently the hand of the operator and includes a thumb overhanging ledge 20 outlining a thumb receiving recess 21 at the side nearest the operator as shown in Figs. 1 and 4. On this side the part 18 of the casting is provided with a threaded boss 22 adapted to receive a coupling nut 23 for securing in place one end of a flexible metallic shield 24 forming the outer portion of the cable 12, the other end of which shield is secured conventionally to the frame of the motor 10.

A short drive shaft 25 is mouted in aligned bearings 26 contained in the two parts 17 and 18 of the handle 13 and is rotated by a drive shaft 27 contained within shield 24 of cable 13 and driven from motor 10. The shaft 25 is provided between the bearings 26 with two concentric cams 28 and 29 which are disposed so that their throws are about 180 apart.

The opposing faces of the parts 17 and 18 of the handle 13 are recessed to provide tool head guideways 30 and 31 of similar construction and of relatively reversed disposition as' shown in Fig. 4 and having an upper extension 32 and a lower extension 33 from opposite sides thereof, the extension on one end being shown in Fig. 2. A pair of tool heads 34 and 35 are slidably mounted respectively in the guideways 30 and 31 for reciprocatory movement in a horizontal plane. For the purpose of providing extensive tool head receiving faces and wide areas of bearing contact between the tool head and the handle, the tool head is provided on opposite sides thereof and at top and bottom thereof with outwardly extending flanges 36 and 37 which have a sliding fit respectively in the grooves which are formed by the extensions 32 and 33 of the tool head guideways 30 as more particularly shown in Fig. 2. The lower exposed face 38 of the lower flange 37 of each head provides a broad fiat tool receiving portion and this lower face is shown to be slightly convexed to accommodate the top side of the similarly shaped tool hereinafter described. The central portion 39 of the tool heads are provided with vertically extending cam slots 40 and 41 containing respectively the cams 28 and 29. From this construction it will be understood that the rotation of the shaft 25 under the power of the electric motor 10 will act through the revolving cam 28 to move the tool head 34 along its guideway 30 first in one direction and then reversing themoment the tool head is moved back in the other direction and that similarly cam 29 reciprocates its associated tool head 35 along a parallel path but the cams are timed to cause the tool heads to be moving in opposite directions at all times between the limits of their movement. The extent of movement of the tool head and of the tools carried thereby can of course be varied by varying the throw of the cam. In actual practice, a high speed reciprocatory movement of the tools of about one half of an inch has proven satisfactory in operation. The sliding tool heads have a snug fit in their respective guideways and the extensive areas of contact between the top and bottom surfaces of the tool heads in their engagement with the handle provide wide bearing surfaces as between the parts 17 and 18 and the flanges 36 and 37 to transmit pressure from the operators hand through the tools and on to the surface under treatment.

Secured to the tool heads to reciprocate therewith is a pair of tools 42 and 43 secured respectively to the heads 34 and 35 and which tools are identical in design, construction and size so that the description of one will be sufficient for the other. The tool includes a reinforcing and attaching plate 44 preferably of the segmental form shown in Fig. 3. Screws 45 are passed through the plate and secure the same fixedly to its associated tool head in those cases where the outer work engaging covering is the only replaceable part. In the form illustrated, the plate is embedded as shown in Fig. 4, in the top side of a similarly shaped backing layer 46 preferably of some semi-soft material such as rubber and may be more or less permanently secured as by glueing. The outer side of the backing is covered by an easily replaceable work engaging covering 47 preferably chamois or cheese cloth itself formed of succeeding layers. As this covering wears away rapidly in use, it is suggested herein that it be made up as an open top sleeve of the requisite elliptical or oval form to fit the backing layer with an elastic binding within its outlining edges 48 and so disposed that the backing layer with its securing plate may be intruded into the opening 49, the binding edge can be snapped over the tool and held in position by the elasticity of the binding elastic.

The bottom work engaging face 50 of the tool is slightly convexed in the direction of its length and in the direction of its reciprocatory movement as shown in Fig. 2 and is fiat transversely of its length as shown in Fig. 4. The sides 51 are curved on a short radius as shown in Figs. 2 and 4 and round downwardly into the large area bottom face 50, thus presenting long narrow polishing surfaces for engaging in long slots or depressions in the surfaceunder treatment. The sides converge towards opposite ends as shown in Fig. 3 to form blunt rounded noses 52 and 53 which can be intruded into recesses of small dimensions and which will present at each end of each tool a polishing nose entirely covered by the end portion of the replaceable cover 47.

In operation and assuming that the parts have been assembled as herein described, that the motor is active and that the surface such as the automobile cover illustrated has been coated with suitable cleansing or polishing material, the operator simply engages the handle by comfortably gripping the same and guides the same back and forth over the surface until the requisite cleansing or polishing effect has been attained. As the polishing tool has side edges and pointed noses as well as flat surface, it is possible to utilize selectively the edges or noses as well as the flat surface thus permitting the polishing of a shouldered portion adjacent a ridge such as the hinge line shown at Fig. 1. The pointed ends or noses provide entrance into corners or other small parts and the fact that both ends of each tool is more or less pointed there is provided an arrangement of different characters of work engaging surfaces which give a wide selection to the operator and he can apply either end to the work when approaching any particular part without reversing the location of the hand guiding the handle. The broad surfaces on the handle presented for hand engagement permits the operator to apply hand pressure as desired conveniently and comfortably.

I claim:

1. In a polishing and cleaning machine, the combination of a freely movable support provided with a curved top side and a grooved periphery constituting a handle adapted to be gripped conveniently by an operator's hand in manipulating the same, a tool head guided in the handle for reciprocatory and short vibratory movement, means for actuating the tool head, power means external of the handle and operatively connected thereto for actuating said means, a polishing tool carried by the head and movable therewith, said tool being elongated in the general direction of movement thereof, and having a form in plan approximately that of one half of an ellipse divided along its major axis and provided on its underside with a fiat extensive arc of work engaging surface with sides rounding into said flat sides and with said sides converging towards each other at one end of the tool and forming a blunt rounded nose and reciprocable in the direction of said major axis.

2. In a device of the class described, the combination of a casting provided with a palm en gaging top side and with a finger engaging periphered groove, and provided with a tool head guideway, extending horizontally when the device is in operative engagement with a horizontal surface, a shaft journalled in said casting and extending horizontally in the same, provided with an eccentric cam, and adapted to receive rotary power from an external source, a tool head mounted for horizontal reciprocatory movement in the guideway and provided with a vertically extending cam slot containing said eccentric cam. said cam and slot being operatively connected to reciprocate the tool head from the rotary movement of the shaft and said head provided with means for securing thereto a polishing tool.

3. In a device of the class described, the combination of a support constituting a handle, a pair of relatively long treating tools carried by the handle, each having the form substantially of half of an ellipse and disposed side by side with their major axis disposed parallel to each other, rigid means for guiding the tools for movement each in the direction approximately of its major axis and power means operatively connected to said tools to actuate the same, said means including camming mechanism for timing the reciprocatory movement of the tools so that one will be in advance of the other and which means will tend to neutralize vibration produced by each of the tools when reciprocating at high speed.

4. In a device of the class described, the combination of a support constituting a handle, a pair of relatively long treating tools carried by the handle and having the form of half of an ellipse divided along its major axis and disposed with their straight edges side by side in tandem and with their major axis disposed parallel to each other, rigid means for guiding the tools for movement each'in the direction approximately of its major axis and camming means operatively connected to said tools to actuate the same over a reciprocatory path which is relatively short compared to the length of the tools.

5. In a cleaning and polishing device, the combination of a support fashioned to provide a handle, a pair of elongated surface polishing tools carried by the support and having pointed noses at each end and normally disposed with their pointed nose ends in transverse alignment and each tool guided for reciprocatory movement along parallel lines with only a slight displacement of the ends relative to each other, a drive shaft having-opposite ends journalled in the handle and extending transversely of the direction of guided reciprocatory movement of the tools, a pair of cams secured to the shaft to turn therewith and relatively circumferontially spaced, each tool provided with a cam slot in winch one of the cams operates for causing the tools to move at high speed and to move simultaneously in opposite directions thereby tending to reduce vibratory movement which would otherwise be induced into the handle by the reciprocatory movements of the tools when moving at high speed.

6. In a device of the class described, the combination of a handle, provided with two tool head guideways extending horizontally when the device is in operative engagement with a horizontal surface, a single shaft journalled in said handle for rotary movement and provided with two eccentric cams having their throws relatively offset about one hundred and eighty degrees apart and thus tending to counterbalance their tendencies to impose vibration on the handle and parts carried thereby, a pair of tool heads mounted for reciprocatory movement in said guideways and provided with cam slots containing said cams, the cams and slots being operatively connected to cause the heads to pass simultaneously in opposite directions with a throw not materially greater than twice the diameter of said shaft and a pair of independent polishing tools, one for each head and each secured to its associated head.

7. In a device of the class described, the combination of a support having its upper side and peripheral edges fashioned to provide a palm fitting handle, a tool head slidably mounted in the handle for reciprocatory movement, a polishing tool carried by the head and having a long substantially elliptical form with its major axis parallel to the line of its reciprocatory movement, said tool having a flat underside merging on all sides into rounded edges and ends and having a layer of soft polishing material covering both its flat side and the rounded edges and ends.

8. In a mechanically actuated hand guided polishing machine, the combination of a tool support, a pair of polishing tools of similar size and configuration, each guided for reciprocatory 'movement in the support, and-disposed closely positioned side-by-side, said tools each having a flat inner side and a curved outer side rounded at its ends into the inner side and having maximum width at its mid-portion and decreasing uniformly in width towards opposite ends and each. having a length more than twice its maximum width, the adjacent flat sides of the tools disposed closer together than would vbe possible if the flat sides had the curvature of the outer sides. eachtool terminating at opposite ends in a pointed nose having a sharply rounded 1 end adapted to be intruded into re-entrant angles and grooves in the surface to be polished,

a drive shaft iournalled in the support and extending parallel to the minor axis of the tools, cams carried by the shaft for reciprocating the tools over a short path of reciprocatory movement and interconnecting the tools to move one tively connected to cause the heads to pass simultaneously in opposite directions and a pair of independent polishing tools, one for each head.

' HOWARD J. MURRAY. 

